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(Photo: Reuters/Mike Hutchings)A Great White Shark swims past a diving cage off Gansbaai about 200 kilometres east of Cape Town.

A Maui shark attack had forced officials to close the Kihei-Wailei beach last week, however, they have now announced that the beaches are again open to the public despite a second shark attack in just four days.

The decision to reopen the beach was made after the Department of Land and Natural Resources examined the water across a two-mile stretch from Polo Beach Park to Mana Kai Maui Resort near Kihei and Wailea. Their investigations indicated that there was no longer any threat posed from sharks and the decision was made Monday that it was safe to reopen the waters to the public.

The second shark attack in just four days occurred when Evvone Cashman was swimming at the beach Wednesday morning about 30 feet from shore in about 10-foot-deep water.

Cashman was oblivious to any danger, and was said to be swimming normally in the water when she was suddenly bitten by a shark.

Cashman said, "I must have had my hands up in front of my face. I think my head was above water, if I remember correctly. I don't know because it happened so fast. I didn't see him coming. I didn't see him leave. He just came and hit me hard and bit me hard and I just took off to the shore as fast as I could."

The 56 year old victim reportedly suffered a 15 inch bite from her neck down to the middle of her spine. The shark bite could also be seen on her chin and both her hands.

Cashman was rushed to the Emergency Room at a local hospital and taken in to surgery. The doctor who operated on her has said that based on the size of bites, the shark must have been about 25 feet long.

Cashman has said, "I got hit really hard and bit and then he let go as quickly as he bit me. And then I just started swimming to shore as fast I as I could, yelling 'help' the whole way. I still can't believe that it happened."

The attack on Cashman took place just four days after another shark attack on the previous Sunday afternoon when a local surfer was attacked by what he has described as a tiger shark off Oahu's White Plains beach

Kiowa Gatewood, 19, who underwent surgery on his left knee and upper calf following the shark attack has said, "I was sitting on my board, when all of a sudden I saw this shark come out of the water and grab my leg. From there, I had this instinct to like, hit it with my left hand and then it let go and turned around and swam away."